Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas House Bill HB942 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	By: Toth H.B. No. 942
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6	6	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
7	7	AN ACT
8	8	relating to a public school classroom safety review and referral
9	9	program for students who engage in violent criminal conduct;
10	10	creating a criminal offense.
11	11	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
12	12	SECTION 1. Subchapter C, Chapter 37, Education Code, is
13	13	amended by adding Section 37.088 to read as follows:
14	14	Sec. 37.088. CLASSROOM SAFETY REVIEW AND REFERRAL PROGRAM.
15	15	(a) If, after an investigation is completed, the principal of a
16	16	public primary or secondary school has reasonable grounds to
17	17	believe that a student engaged in violent criminal conduct,
18	18	including assaultive conduct, the principal shall:
19	19	(1) refer the student to the classroom safety review
20	20	committee established under Subsection (b); or
21	21	(2) make a report to any school district police
22	22	department, if applicable, or the police department of the
23	23	municipality in which the school is located or, if the school is not
24	24	in a municipality, the sheriff of the county in which the school is
25	25	located.
26	26	(b) Before the beginning of each school year, a public
27	27	primary or secondary school shall establish a classroom safety
28	28	review committee that consists of five classroom teachers who are
29	29	selected from all classroom teachers employed by the school through
30	30	a nomination and election process, as determined by the school.
31	31	(c) If a student is referred to the classroom safety review
32	32	committee under Subsection (a)(1), the committee shall review all
33	33	electronic, written, and verbal evidence or testimony or video
34	34	provided to the committee and interview any eyewitnesses. After
35	35	review, the committee shall, by majority vote, refer the student
36	36	to:
37	37	(1) a person designated by the school as the juvenile
38	38	diversion administrator under Subsection (d); or
39	39	(2) the classroom safety referral board established
40	40	under Subsection (e).
41	41	(d) A public primary or secondary school shall designate a
42	42	person as the juvenile diversion administrator for the school. If
43	43	the classroom safety review committee refers a student to the
44	44	juvenile diversion administrator under Subsection (c)(1), the
45	45	juvenile diversion administrator shall:
46	46	(1) require the student to perform a certain number of
47	47	hours of community service;
48	48	(2) require the student to participate in tutoring; or
49	49	(3) make a determination that the student is not
50	50	required to take any additional actions.
51	51	(e) A public primary or secondary school shall establish a
52	52	classroom safety referral board that consists of:
53	53	(1) two teachers who serve on the classroom safety
54	54	review committee;
55	55	(2) an assistant district attorney of the county in
56	56	which the school is located;
57	57	(3) an investigator from the sheriff's office in the
58	58	county in which the school is located; and
59	59	(4) a parent of a student enrolled at the school
60	60	selected by the board of trustees of the school district.
61	61	(f) If the classroom safety review committee refers a
62	62	student to the classroom safety referral board, the board shall
63	63	review all electronic, written, and verbal evidence or testimony or
64	64	video provided to the board and may hear new testimony from the
65	65	student or an eyewitness of the conduct. After review, the board,
66	66	by majority vote, shall:
67	67	(1) report the student's conduct to the local law
68	68	enforcement agency; or
69	69	(2) refer the student to the juvenile diversion
70	70	administrator under Subsection (d).
71	71	(g) Materials and information provided to or produced by the
72	72	classroom safety review committee or the classroom safety referral
73	73	board during a student review under this section must be maintained
74	74	in the student's school record until the student's 24th birthday.
75	75	(h) A person commits an offense if the person destroys
76	76	material or information described by Subsection (g) before the
77	77	period of maintenance required under that subsection has expired.
78	78	An offense under this subsection is a Class A misdemeanor.
79	79	(i) If an educator commits an offense under Subsection (h),
80	80	the educator may be subject to termination or suspension of the
81	81	educator's contract.
82	82	(j) Any testimony provided by an educator to the classroom
83	83	safety review committee or the classroom safety referral board
84	84	under this section is confidential and may not be disclosed to any
85	85	other person.
86	86	SECTION 2. This Act applies beginning with the 2025-2026
87	87	school year.
88	88	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
89	89	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
90	90	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
91	91	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
92	92	Act takes effect September 1, 2025.